Dreams Of A Djinn
by Bugsbunny2
Summary: In the episode “What Is And What Should Never Be”, Dean made a decision. He knew that when you are about to die in a dream, you wake up. So he stabbed himself, and returned to his own world. But what if hadn't left yet? Co-written with Dangermouse00
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One – Not According To Plan 

Beeping. Voices. A baby crying.

Dean's eyes slowly opened, and he blinked a few times. At first his vision was blurry, he could see shapes, yet they were very out of focus. After a few seconds, his eyes began to work again and they formed into distinct shapes. A bed… he was in a bed. Next to him was a machine, and that was what was making the beeping noise. He was in a room; painted all white with white curtains draped over the windows.

He was in a hospital. Dean couldn't remember what had happened. He tried and tried to remember but he couldn't. He just remembered being surrounded by people. Sam, his mom, Jessica, and a girl he hardly knew.

He realized he needed a drink. He looked around, there was a table over his bed, but no drink was on it. He lay back on his pillow and searched his brain for what had happened. A knife, focused on him. Hands. His hands. Dean realized in horror that he had stabbed himself. He remembered the pain. The searing pain that had plunged through this body. Then, slowly, he began to remember why. A Djinn sending him here; his mom and Jessica alive, he had a job, a girlfriend. Yet he didn't have Sam. Sure, he had _a_ Sam, but it wasn't _his _Sam. He was different. By gaining his mother, he had lost the brother he knew and loved. The decision to leave had nearly killed him. He wanted to stay here with his mom; he wanted it so bad. But his body was dying in the real world. And he wanted Sam back.

He wondered if stabbing himself had worked. There was a way to find out.

"SAM!" He yelled. His voice was hoarse.

He yelled Sam's name again and this time the door opened and Sam walked in. He smiled. _Oh, please be the real Sam. _Dean thought to himself.

"Dean. You okay?" Sam sat in the chair next to Dean's bed.

"Hey Sam. What happened?" He asked. Of course, he already knew.

"You stabbed yourself, Dean." Sam frowned and shook his head. "Why did you do that?"

"Cause I don't want to stay here! I want to get back to Sam!" Sam frowned.

"What? I'm right here, what are you talking about?"

"What do you mean what are _you_ talking about? You were all trying to get me to stay before, now you're acting like you don't even know what happened!" Dean yelled. It was true. All four of them had tried to get him to stay and now Sam was acting like he had said nothing.

"What are you... okay, I'm just gonna... get you a drink." Sam left the room, with one last look at Dean.

Dean whacked the side of the bed in anger. It hadn't worked. Now how was he gonna get back? He knew one thing; he had to get out of this hospital. He looked down at his wound, there was a large bandage wrapped around him. He tried to sit up. There was a pain in his side that felt like the knife going through him again. He lay back down. Dean was angry with himself. Why had he even bothered? It hadn't worked, now he was stuck here… in this bed… his real body hanging…. dying somewhere. He imagined Sam, trying to wake him up, or hunting the Djinn, alone.

"Nurse! NURSE!" He yelled. A nurse ran through the doors. She was skinny with blonde hair down to her shoulders and blue eyes. "Hey." Dean said, smiling.

"What's wrong?" The nurse asked.

"Nothing, anymore." She frowned.

"What do you want?"

"A drink of water. Please," Dean smiled.

"Sure." The nurse said, quite bitterly, then walked off. Dean watched her walk off, and then lay down on his pillow. He had to think of a way to get out of here. He'd made the decision to leave once before, and the longer he stayed here the more it hurt to have his mom back. The door opened, Dean looked up, and expecting it to be the nurse, but it wasn't. Dean's mom walked through the door. She walked over and sat on the edge of his bed. She handed him a glass of water.

"The nurse told me to give you this." Dean smiled and stared at her.

"Thanks mom"

"Are you okay?" She smiled at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Mary smiled weakly again and walked off.

What was he going to do now? Trying to kill himself again probably wouldn't work. Lying back in his hospital bed, an idea suddenly popped into his head. So, everything hadn't happened to him, his mom hadn't died, the demon hadn't come for Sam, but surely stuff like that had to have happened to somebody, there must be other hunters out there. Bobby, Ellen, Josh... who knows? He would have to track them down. He didn't have his usual geek boy sidekick, so he would go it alone, using any resource possible. As soon as he got out of this hospital, it would be all systems go. As much as he loved his new family, he would have to leave them. They would only get in the way and try to stop him as they had before. He couldn't let that happen, not again. The looks in his family's eyes as he contemplated leaving them, were heartbreaking. He felt as if he had betrayed them.

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Sam was pacing worriedly in the motel room he and Dean had rented. Dean had failed to check in, it had been hours since their last conversation. He had set off to hunt the Djinn alone. Sam had asked him to come pick him up, but he'd gone ahead and now he was missing. He didn't even know which building Dean had gone to. Even so, he still had a copy of the list he had given Dean. He would have to follow in his older brother's footsteps and slammed the motel room door on his way out.

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Dean spent a few more days in hospital with his "family" visiting him everyday. As much as he loved being part of a family, he couldn't help feeling like he was missing out on something…. his relationship with his brother. In this dream world it had never had chance to flourish in the way it had done in reality. Their mom never died, so their dad never started hunting and neither had they. Dean had never taken care of Sam and now here they were, just co-existing, sure they were brothers and they loved each other, but it was never more than that.

His wound was healing well, and Dean returned to the apartment he shared with Carmen against medical advice. Because she was a nurse, she nagged him every time he tried to do something, like make something to eat or to get up from wherever he was sitting or lying. He got that she wanted to take care of him and make sure he didn't tear his stitches, but she wasn't real…. none of it was, not the apartment, nothing.

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Sam searched the first few buildings without so much as a clue that Dean had ever been there. He was starting to panic now. He couldn't lose Dean. Not now. He was all Sam had. Dean had taken care of him his whole life and had carried him from a burning building.

He turned the corner at the end of the corridor and came to a metal staircase. Sam silently stepped down them and looked around the large basement he found himself in.

It was poorly lit, so Sam couldn't see the weirdly tattooed guy who came up behind him. The next thing Sam saw was pitched blackness.


	2. Angel

At the end of the episode "What Is And What Should Never Be", Dean made a decision

Chapter 2 - Angel

Sam woke up in the darkness and felt comfortable mattress beneath him. It was warm, a large feather quilt rested on him and his head nestled on a soft pillow. He frowned, wondering where he was and nearly jumped out of his skin when something brushed up against the bare skin of his arm. A groan from his left sounded and he jumped out of bed.

"Sam?" A voice swam through the darkness to land on his ears as softly as butterfly wings. It was a voice he knew well. He felt a bump appear in his throat as he muttered that one word.

"J.. Jess?" Even as he said it, he knew.

The light flickered on and there, sat in the bed, hair flowing like silk on her shoulders, was a face Sam had only dreamed of since that fateful night. Jess.

"Sam?" She repeated, he perfect face crumpling to a frown.

Sam couldn't think what to say. As he stared at the face he had wished to see for so long, he only wanted to scoop her up in his arms and kiss her, kiss her until he ran out of breath. He wanted to tell her he loved her, hold her forever, hold her to make up for all the times he had missed holding her. But yet, he knew, this was wrong, it wasn't the real Jess, the real Jess was dead. And yet…

"Sam, get back in bed, what's wrong?"

Now Sam couldn't stop them, hot tears ran down his cheeks, and he saw in his mind the day Jess had died, the fire, the blood dripping on his face. Jess jumped up.

"Sam!" She ran over and put her arm around him, he welcomed her hug like a new born bear welcomed its mother. The feel of her skin brought welcome memories back to Sam, yet the memories only served to fuel his tears. He pulled her into a tight hug and sobbed. Jess just stood there, confused. Sam realized this was the Jess from the Djinn's world, to her, it was a normal day.

"Sorry." He muttered after a while, yet he still didn't let go of her, he never wanted to let go. "Bad dream" He muttered softly.

"It's okay Sam. I'll make you coffee" Jess pulled away from him and walked out of the room.

"Jess!" Sam shouted after her and she poked her familiar head around the door. She waited for him to say something. "I… I love you… so much." He said, and he meant it.

She smiled her radiant smile that sent flutters through Sam. "I love you too. That's why I married you!" And she walked out.

_That's why I married you… _Sam's heart skipped a beat at her last words and he slowly raised his left hand. Sure enough, he had a wedding ring on his ring finger. He sank slowly onto the bed and stared at the ring. Me and Jess, married, he thought, another single tear ran down his cheek. He looked around and saw a picture in a frame by the bed. He picked it up and looked at the picture. He and Jess, in a snowy place, taken by someone else, they were smiling eternal smiles. Sam replaced the picture and sank down onto the bed and buried his head in his hands. His muffled sobs shook his shoulders and soaked his hands. He thought of this Jess, the real Jess, and the life they could have had. He sobbed because of that, and because he knew this wasn't real, and if he stayed he would die. Right now, he hated the Djinn. It had brought him the one thing he had dreamed for for a long time after her death. Jess was here, now, they were married, and she was alive. And yet, it wasn't real, and that's what tore at his heart the most, the thought that he would have to lose the love of his life a second time.

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Sam sat at the kitchen table, Jess opposite him. She was reading the paper and drinking a cup of coffee. She had made him one, which to him, tasted like the best coffee ever.

Jess caught him staring and smiled, then frowned playfully. "What?"

Sam shook his head. "Nothing, you're just beautiful"

Jess smiled brightly. Sam smiled back, and they stared into each others eyes for a moment, which to Sam, felt like an eternity. Jess stood up and walked out of the kitchen. Sam watched her go. After a few seconds, she came back and placed what Sam recognized as his cell phone on the table.

"I found this behind the cushion on the sofa." Jess said, smiling.

Sam picked the cell up and immediately began looking through the numbers. He was looking for one name, and one name only. After a few times going through the address book, he realized he wasn't going to find it. It wasn't there, for some reason, Dean's cell number wasn't there. But there was one name there that made Sam's whole body melt, _mom_. Sam stared at the number. His mom was alive, Jess was alive, he had never known his mom but he felt an overwhelming urge to find his mom and hug her and Jess and never, ever let go. This was unfair, he wanted to stay, for Jess, for his mom, but if he did, he would die, and he couldn't do that to Dean.

"Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you have Dean's cell number? I want to call him." Sam asked, but he could tell by the confused and also pained expression on Jess's face that he had asked the wrong question.

"Are you alright Sam?" Jess asked, with a now worried face.

"Yeah... I'm fine."

"I know you two weren't that close, but you still miss him don't you?"

Sam was about to ask who when it dawned in him that Jess was talking about Dean. Dean was dead. The Djinn had given him the one thing he had wanted the most, yet had taken away the one thing that was most important in Sam's life, his brother. Sam sat down. He was worn out by it all.

"Terrible, just terrible. You two should have been closer, we all should have, and then maybe we could have helped him, you know? We could have helped him stop drinking. I was always saying it would kill him, we all did, but he never listened... never." Jess's eyes welled up, and she started to cry. Sam couldn't bear to see her like this. He jumped up and pulled her close to him. She even smelt of the real Jess. He hugged her until the tears died down, and then she looked up into his face.

He kissed her then, and he felt the familiar love he used to feel, still did, deep down. And that scared him. It scared him because he knew it wasn't the real Jess, he knew it was just one of the Djinn's tricks, and he was scared that the Djinn could force that emotion on someone.


	3. What Will I Have To Do?

At the end of the episode "What Is And What Should Never Be", Dean made a decision

Chapter3

As Dean pulled up to 1232 Cherrybourne Avenue, he sincerely hoped he would get some clue as to how he could get back to Sam, the real Sam, not some alternate reality where Sam is actually at law school and practically married to Jess.

He parked the Impala outside the house and rang the doorbell. He waited impatiently as footsteps were heard waltzing towards the door.

It opened suddenly and there was a girl, not Jo, but younger and brunette.

"Can I help you?" she asked Dean pleasantly. The girl had a nice smile and it was obvious that she was a Harvelle.

"Is your mother home?"

"Yes, hold on a sec, I'll get her for you." She walked back up the hallway and returned with another older woman. She seemed different to the usual Ellen, softer, gentler.

"Hi, you may not know me but my name is Dean Winchester."

"You're right, I don't. Now whatever ya sellin' we don't want any." Said Ellen.

"I'm not selling anything, Ellen." He said calmly.

"How do you know my name? Have you been watching my house?"

"Listen, Ellen. You don't know me, but I know you. You were a friend of my dad's, his name was John Winchester."

"Never heard of him. Now get off my property before I call the police!"

Dean had no choice but to obey the woman's orders and leave her property. He got back into the Impala and drove to the motel he had checked into the previous day.

It seemed as if Bill Harvelle had never even hunted, never mind been killed on a hunt with dad. So, Ellen had never opened the roadhouse.

Dean decided not to bother with looking for Bobby, but settled on an alternative plan. Missouri. It seemed very unlikely to him that she wouldn't have any of her powers that she had in the real world. So he travelled back to Lawrence and made an appointment to visit her anyway. It was definitely a good sign that her name was listed in the phone book under _"Psychics and Clairvoyants"._

He arrived at her house and knocked on her door.

"Ah, Mr Winchester. Do come in. Please excuse me, I do have a client at the moment, so if you wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes while I wrap things up?" Explained the familiar woman, he knew to be Missouri.

"Of course," nodded Dean. Missouri went into a room next to the kitchen and returned about five minutes later with a young woman.

"Thank you, Miss Mosely. You've been very helpful." She said.

"No problem, dear. Happy to help." Missouri saw the woman to the door and came back after closing it. "Now Dean, if you'd like to go through into the lounge, I will be there in a sec."

Dean obliged and walked through to the lounge as directed and sat down on the couch. Missouri followed a few minutes later.

"So, I hear you're in a place where you don't belong." Dean was stunned to say the least. He knew she was the real deal, but he'd never expected her to just pull a fact out of thin air, she'd even said she couldn't do that. "There's a lot you don't know about me, boy. A lot."

"Okay, I get it, I'm sorry." Stuttered Dean. "So, what do I do? How do I get back?"

"There must be a reason why you are here. To get to where you want to, you've got to get rid of that reason. It's the only way. It may be hard, but if you want it enough, it's what you'll have to do." She explained.

_He'd have to kill his mother? He couldn't do that, could he? _It would break his heart. Dean had lost his mother at a young age, it would be hell if he had to go through that again. Then again, if he had to do it to get back to Sam, then he will just have to muddle through, whether he liked it or not.


	4. Don't Make Me

At the end of the episode "What Is And What Should Never Be", Dean made a decision

Chapter 4 – Don't Make Me

Dean stared at his mother's house, frightened to do what he was about to do. He just got his family back, but now he was going to take it all away. His mom in particular. He'd wished dearly since that night that he could have her back, for her to take care of him and tuck him in at night.

Now it was reality, and although he was happy that she was alive, Dean wanted back the great relationship he had with his brother in the real world.

_You have to do it, Dean, it's the only way. _He told himself. Dean got out of the car and went round to the trunk. Taking out a can of gasoline and a box of matches, he shut it again and started towards his childhood home.

Dean's heart ached painfully, as he picked the lock on the front door. His mind was telling him it had to be done, but his soul was saying run, run as fast and as far as you can away from this house.

He opened the door and breathed in the smell of his home. A cocktail of aroma's reached him, his mom's perfume, his mom's cooking, old books and a faint smell of flowers. He loved that smell. He walked further into the house and before he realized what he was doing, he was climbing the stairs. He crept quietly to the door of his mom's bedroom and pressed his ear to the wood. Her rhythmic breathing reached his ears and he smiled.

He opened the door and looked at her. She looked peaceful sleeping, curled up in the fetal position. Her chest was rising and falling slowly. Dean found him self staring at his mother, memories of his childhood flooding his mind, real memories, not the false memories of the past few days. He saw his mom tucking him in at night, telling him angels where watching over him, his mom laughing at a stupid joke he had told her, humoring him, his mom cooking him chips in her apron, his mom, his mom, endless memories of his mom tormenting him.

He felt hot tears that burnt his checks more than the hottest iron when he thought about what he was going to do. He knew it wasn't his real mom, but what he was doing still hurt him.

He pulled himself away from the room, letting his tears fall. He didn't care anymore. He crept into the bathroom and opened the can of gasoline. He took a deep, shaky breath and poured some of the contents onto the floor. He took the matches out and lit one. His brain was screaming at him to blow it out, wipe up the gasoline and run, but he had to do this.

He dropped the match. The gasoline lit up in seconds and the heat hit him like a wall. He walked into the hall, carrying the tub of gasoline. He knew it was dangerous, carrying it, but he was hurting too much to care. He doused the hall, and the other bedrooms in gasoline. But not his mother's room, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

He walked slowly downstairs, listening to the fire roaring. He sat on the couch downstairs, letting the smell of the fire surround him. Suddenly, an ear-splitting fire alarm sounded but he didn't move, he didn't even flinch, as if he hadn't heard the sound at all.

At the same time a crash sounded, followed by other small crashes. Dean glanced in the direction of the crash and he noticed the stairs had collapsed. He wanted desperately to find a way up, grab his mom and get the hell out of there.

His eyes watered ceaselessly, half real tears, half tears induced by smoke. Suddenly, above the sound of the alarm, another sound cut the air. Dean closed his eyes and put his hands over his ears, trying desperately but failing to block out the sound of his mom's screaming.

Dean lay back on the couch, his body shaking with sobs. He let the smoke engulf him, choking his veins. He felt himself slipping away; it was getting harder to breathe.

"_Good night Dean. I love you." His mom tucked him in, kissing him lightly on the forehead and smiling with all the brightness of the sun. _

Dean opened his eyes but he couldn't see a thing. Smoke clouded his vision. A scream cut into his mind, an agonized scream of pain.

"_The angels..."_

A groan escaped from him.

"_...watching over you..."_

Dean's breathing slowed and his arm dropped to the floor.

_His mother walked over to him, smiling. She placed her hand on his face with the touch of an angel. "I love you Dean. Don't you ever forget that."_

Dean lay on the couch, memories of his mother flooding his mind, although it wasn't his real mother this was happening to, he couldn't help thinking that it was. He had wanted her back so much, now he was destroying his own dream. He blinked one final tear before he slipped into unconsciousness.

"_I love you"..._

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Dean woke up suddenly, jolting upright and gasping for air. Then he realized he could breather perfectly. The house was gone, the fire was gone, the smoke was gone. But his mother's screaming still remained, bouncing around in every crevice of Dean's mind, torturing him.

He looked around. He was in the alley by the place where the Djinn lived. He remembered Sam, the one had he been through that all for. He got up and set off to find him.


	5. Back To Reality

At the end of the episode "What Is And What Should Never Be", Dean made a decision

**Chapter 5 – Back to reality**

Sam walked into the bedroom and began looking at the photographs again. He smiled. Then he saw one he hadn't seen before, Sam and Jess on their wedding day. He brought the picture close to his face and stared at Jess. She looked more beautiful than ever in the crisp white wedding dress.

He put the frame down and looked around, then he noticed a laptop. His laptop.

He walked over and opened it, typing in his usual password. It worked. Opening the internet, he typed "Djinn" into the search engine.

He jumped as two hands snaked around either side of him, finally resting on his chest. 'Whatcha doin'?" Jess said cheerfully.

"Oh, nothing." Sam said standing up, he tried to get past her into the kitchen but Jess stopped him. She kissed him. As he kissed her back, her hand came up to his head and her fingers played with his hair.

Jess pushed Sam down onto the bed and continued to kiss him. But whilst he kissed her back, this felt wrong. He'd slept with other women since Jess, even fell in love again, but this felt too wrong. He couldn't do this; it was too close to the real Jess.

"Jess. I'm sorry. I...I'm tired...I just wanna go to sleep." Sam said, standing up. Jess looked at him, her face expressionless, then she smiled.

"Ok. But... I just need to talk to you first. Please." Jess left the room. Sam frowned slightly, then followed her.

When Sam emerged into the kitchen, Jess was sitting at the table, fiddling with her wedding ring.

"Jess?" Sam said cautiously.

Jess looked up and smiled at him. She stood up wrapped her arms around him. He looked down at her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong Sam." She smiled and stepped away from him. "I... I'm..." She laughed nervously. "I'm pregnant" She smiled expectantly at Sam.

Sam didn't know what to feel, he stood there, his mouth opening and closing with things to say, bitten back at the last minute. His head was jammed with thoughts but none of them formed into words. He smiled.

"I...er...I" Then he found the thing to say. "That's..." Sam had to stop, a sudden splitting headache pierced his head. He doubled over, holding his head. He groaned in agony.

"Sam? SAM!" He heard Jess yelling. He felt her arms go around him, then, suddenly, his legs buckled and he fell backwards, Jess's arm slipped from around him and he fell. Yet he didn't hit the floor. The room had suddenly gone pitch black; he heard nothing, saw nothing, smelt nothing. The only thing he could see was himself and he appeared to be floating.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. Sam felt as if he was falling. When it finally stopped, he opened his eyes without realizing he had closed them. When his eyes adjusted, he saw he was in a dark room. Sam felt as if he had been in a coma, he was tired, he felt drained and he realized that his arms were tied up above his head. He could smell something strange. Then he realized what it was. Blood. He looked down at himself. Okay, so it wasn't him. Then he saw a figure lying on the floor at his feet, blood pooling from his mouth. He had tattoos all over his face and Sam realized it the Djinn.

Suddenly, a figure approached from the other end of the room. Sam looked up at the figure, who started to run towards him. As the figure got closer, he recognized his brother. Sam felt Dean's arms around him and felt his hands being cut from the place where they had been tied. He let himself fall into Dean's arms.

"Sam..." Dean moved Sam so that they were face to face. Dean held Sam's head up. "Sam...come on, say something."

"Nuuuuurrrrg" Sam tried to say something but all he could make was that sound. He was too tired and too groggy to manage anything else.

"Nurg? That isn't even a word. I'm just kidding, Sam, come on, lets get you to the car." Sam let himself be dragged away by Dean.

Dean drove to the motel room they had occupied earlier. He felt slightly weakened by his out of this world experience. Sam, however had been affected more by the Djinn's Jedi mind tricks. He was groggy and still a little confused by what had happened and what was going on around him.

Dean half-carried Sam into the room and placed him on the bed. He took off Sam's boots and pulled the covers around his brother, so he would be warm.

Dean had reasoned that a good night's sleep would make Sam and himself better. He took off his own boots and jacket and climbed into bed, where his last thought was of his deceased mother, before he fell into a restful sleep.

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Sam woke up groggily with memories of the day before floating around in his head. Jess had been pregnant…

Dean walked in and placed a bag of something on the bed. A smell of fresh fries met Sam and his mouth watered. He hadn't realized how hungry he was.

He asked a question he had been dying to ask.

"Dean? What happened?" He said, sitting up on his bed.

Dean stared at Sam for a moment, then opened his mouth to speak.

He stalled, as if trying to work out what to say. Until he finally found the right words.

"I… did something… in the Djinn's freaky world, and I think it killed the Djinn. It got both of us back at least."

"Yeah, it did."

Dean opened the bag and ripped into the pack of fries. He held them up and said with a mouthful them,

"Want some?"

Sam jumped up and they both stuffed their faces with fries.


End file.
